Million Mile Month, 2021

Each year at this time Healthcode.org puts on the Million Mile Month Challenge. During the month, a global community of walkers, runners, swimmers, and bikers collectively walk, run, swim, and bike one million miles during the month of April. This pedometer geek has participated in this event for the past several years (five? six? more? I have lost count) supporting the American Diabetes Association. Most of the money raised during the month goes to various charities, but ultimately the idea behind it is for everyone to live a healthy/healthier life.

This year this pedometer geek pledged to walk one hundred miles. As of the halfway point, this geek has completed over fifty-two miles. With about two weeks to go, this geek is on track to complete to the goal, but also hopes to exceed it.

What’s more this pedometer geek encourages everyone to join in. It is not too late. Check out Million Mile Month or http://www.Healthcode.org. They will still accept registrations and like last year, because of Covid-19, the organization has plans for Million Mile Month: May Community Challenge. While donations are desired, it is not necessary to donate to participate.

BP: Failed Haiku #64

It has been some time since this pedometer geek poet has submitted to the online journal of English senryu, Failed Haiku. In the past, I made the effort to submit to this online journal as many of my senryu were accepted by the editor, Mike Rehling. (Thanks, Mike.) Then this pedometer geek stopped submitting for no other reason than laziness, thus missing the cut-off date for submissions.

More recently, like the previous year, this poet seemed to have lost the drive to write, ignoring whatever little inspiration there was. With a digital camera in hand daily walks became an opportunity to photograph the local community’s flora and fauna. Learning to use Photoshop also took time away from writing.

Yet, there were a few writing highlights (and most of them where shared on previous blog posts, but I digress) and there was the publication of a few haiku in Stardust Haiku journal as well as The Haiku Foundation’s Haiku Dialogue’s weekly forum.

As this year began, though, this poet has made an effort to submit to more journals. A local group made up a list of various journals and their submission dates, and that has helped me to keep focused. No, I don’t submit to all journals, and I have had some rejections, but I have had quite a few haiku selected for publication including this month’s Failed Haiku, which was edited by Bryan Rickert. (Thanks Bryan.) The following senryu are as follows:

new year

a new diary filled

the same news  

senior prom

she wears a mask

that matches her gown 

footprints in the snow

my granddaughter asks

if she’s a princess  

so proud

my grandson shows off

the hole in his smile  

drowning

in throw pillows

i dream of marshmallows  

~Nancy Brady, 2021

To read the whole issue, which is jam-packed with over 200 pages of senryu, haibun, and haiga, check out http://www.failedhaiku.com. There are some really excellent senryu and all are worth reading. Another thank you to Paula J. Lambert for some editing help with my “so proud” senryu.

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BP: The Train Anthology and more…

Several years ago, on Jacquie Pearce’s blog, http://www.wildink.wordpress.com, there was a post asking for train-themed haiku and other related poetry forms for a planned anthology about trains of all sorts. This pedometer geek writer submitted a few haiku for consideration, and the editor responded that at least one haiku would be included in the compilation.

It has been several years in the making (interruptions like global pandemics contributed to this, but I digress), but Jacquie Pearce has finally published her train anthology called Last Train Home as of March 22, 2021. It is a beautiful volume of contemporary haiku, tanka, and rengay. Poets from across the globe have contributed to it. Thank you, Jacquie, for including one of my haiku. I am proud that I am part of the global community of haiku poets, and include my haiku here:

open air concert

string quartet accompanied

by a passing train

~Nancy Brady, 2021

Another journal, Presence #69, arrived in this pedometer geek’s mailbox this week. Presence is a British journal, which is published several times a year. It includes not only haiku, but also tanka, rengay, haibun, essays, and haiku book reviews. Like the train anthology, this journal is global in scope with poets from countries around the world. Thanks to Ian Storr, the general editor, for accepting one of my haiku for this issue. I am grateful to have a haiku included, and it is as follows:

spring breeze

cocoons open to

magnolia blossoms

~Nancy Brady, 2021

Check out the website, http://www.haikupresence.org for more information.

BP: Golden Triangle Haiku

For the last eight years, there has been a call for submissions to the Golden Triangle Haiku competition. This year there were over 2800 haiku submitted including 200 haiku from entrants under 18 years of age in the new Youth category. The contest received entries from 60 countries, 49 states, and the District of Columbia. The winning poems can be seen on colorful signs throughout the Golden Triangle through April 2021.

For those who are not familiar with the Golden Triangle, it is in the heart of Washington D.C.’s business district, stretching from the front lawn of the White House to Dupont Circle.

This pedometer geek poet is thrilled to have had one of my haiku selected from the many haiku submitted on the theme of Daydreams and Musings. It is as follows:

a hammock…

she watches drifting clouds

through oak leaves

~Nancy Brady, 2021

If anyone has the opportunity to be in Washington, D.C. this April, take time to check out all the haiku that will be gracing flower boxes in the Golden Triangle. If you can’t visit, there is the list of the winners and all the haiku chosen by the judges for inclusion at https://goldentriangledc.com/golden-haiku-2021-winners Congratulations to all of the poets whose haiku were selected for this honor, and thank you to the judges who had to judge that many haiku.

Vegetable Cookery: A 99-Word Flash Fiction

This week’s prompt over at http://www.carrotranch.com was to write a 99-word story (no more, no less) which included the words sweet potatoes.

Vegetable Cookery

The sophomore home economics’ curriculum included yeast bread, which was the main reason Julie chose this elective; however, it also included vegetable cookery. Julie wasn’t thrilled about this unit because she didn’t like vegetables; the rule was that students had to taste each one. Swiss chard, rutabagas, eggplant, Brussels sprouts, and more vegetables that she had never heard of, but found that she liked. A new favorite was sweet potatoes especially with brown sugar and marshmallows. One vegetable she managed to not eat was okra, and how Julie managed to do that without getting caught, well, that’s another story.

Nancy Brady, 2021

To see all the stories about sweet potatoes or write one, check out http://www.carrotranch.com.

Our New Cat: A 99-word Story

It has been some time since this pedometer geek has written a 99-word (no more and no less) story. It is based on the http://www.carrotranch.com prompt of ‘frozen.’ Here is my last minute entry:

Our New Cat

Lisa called us about a stray cat that Marcia, a co-worker, had recently rescued. To be more accurate, the cat had found Marcia’s stoop on a wintry December night, begging to come inside. When she first saw the frozen, frightened black cat, he was backed into a corner by a snarling, hissing cat. Marcia opened the back door and the cat raced inside. Unfortunately, her husband’s allergies flared up, and the cat they had taken to the vet and named Graham had to go. The couple wanted a good family for Graham, and we fit the bill, adopting Regulus.    

~Nancy Brady, 2021

To read all the entries, check out http://www.carrotranch.com.

In other writing events, the following haiku tied for seventh place in the latest Indian Kukai #35:

first tooth lost…

my grandson recites

his ABCs

~Nancy Brady, 2021

For those unfamiliar with the kukai concept, each poet submits a haiku anonymously based upon a theme. Each poet who has submitted a haiku votes for the three top haiku he or she likes the best from the other poets (poets are forbidden to vote for their own and are disqualified if they fail to vote) in a scoring point system of 3 points, 2 points, and 1 point for the favorite first, second, and third place haiku respectively. After compiling all the votes, the results are released.

In this quarter’s kukai, the theme was LETTER. All of the haiku can be seen at http://www.indiankukai.blogspot.com

BP: Stardust Haiku Issue #50

February’s Stardust Haiku (Poetry With a Little Sparkle) online journal has just been published. It is the fiftieth issue, and the journal is the brainchild of Valentina Ranaldi-Adams, who is a haiku poet herself. Like previous issues, it contains haiku from around the world. There are haiku poets from Australia, Bulgaria, Canada, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Pakistan, Poland, Slovenia, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America. It is truly a global journal, and this pedometer geek is proud to have had a haiku selected for this month’s journal. The haiku is as follows:

soccer practice…

the goalie played

by the cat

 ~Nancy Brady, 2021

To read all of the other haiku, check out www.stardusthaiku.blogspot.com. Previous issues and submission guidelines can also be viewed there.  

Thank you, Valentina, for accepting one of my haiku. It is appreciated.

BP: Stardust Haiku, January 2021 (Issue #49)

January’s issue of Stardust Haiku (Poetry With a Little Sparkle) was just published as of the 28th. The editor, Valentina Ranaldi-Adams, began this monthly journal in January 2017, and this issue starts her fifth year of publishing her online journal. This month, like others, is truly a global affair with haiku poets from thirteen different countries (like Singapore, Malta, Nepal, Canada, and others) and five different continents (North America, Australia, Asia, Europe, and Africa. This pedometer geek poet feels extremely fortunate to have had one haiku chosen for this month’s issue. Thank you, Valentina. It is as follows:

homeless

they adopt

a black cat

~Nancy Brady, 2021

To read the current issue or any of the past issues, check out http://stardusthaiku.blogspot.com/.

Thanks again, Valentina. In a recent Zoom meeting, she talked a little about her process of selecting and arranging haiku so that the journal is cohesive. She indicated that she lays out all the submissions and arranges and re-arranges them before selecting the haiku so that they work together. After hearing that, I returned to some of the previous issues and read the haiku with new eyes (and senses).

Meet the new member of our family, Regulus Black. Photo by Nancy Brady, 2021

BP–Stardust Haiku (November and December issues)

This pedometer geek was fortunate to have a haiku published in both November’s and December’s editions of Stardust Haiku, which is edited by Valentina Ranaldi-Adams. She gets submissions from the global haiku community. In November’s issue (#47), there were haiku from Belgium, Romania, Nepal, Ghana, Bulgaria, Australia, the Netherlands, China, Italy, the UK, Canada, India, and the United States. In December’s issue (#48), there were haiku from Singapore, Belgium, Turkey, Pakistan, the UK, Canada, Italy, Australia, India, Canada, and the United States.

This is the haiku which was chosen for November’s journal:

stargazing…

the white ribbon across

the night sky

~Nancy Brady, 2020

The haiku, which was chosen for December’s journal, is as follows:

winter solstice

moonlight sparkles

on the frost

~Nancy Brady, 2020

To read all of the haiku from Stardust Haiku, check out stardusthaiku.blogspot.com/p/stardust-haiku-issues.html. Back issues can also be found on the site. Thank you, Valentina, for all your hard work each month combing through all submissions and coming up with some poetry with a sparkle. Thank you also for accepting some of my haiku over the years that your journal has been in publication.

Happy Hogmanay and may 2021 be a better year for all.

BP: Bloo Outlier (a haiku journal)

This pedometer geek was fortunate enough to have a haiku in the inaugural issue of Bloo Outlier (there should be a diacritical mark over one of the Os, but I digress). The Outlier is the newest project of Alan Summers, a haiku poet from Great Britain.

In this issue there are 260 haiku, tanka, and haibun interspersed with photographs. Here is mine:

last chemo…

she dances

among the cherry blossoms

~Nancy Brady, 2020

To read all the poems and the photographs, use this link:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1SdwR7QdRK7QP73c3ezhCEWBf5I4r8AGb/view?usp=sharing